From Red to White
by Butterscreen
Summary: Rewrite of The Red. Two different Kakashis. Two different deaths. Something within them makes the death god reject them and throw them into a different timeline. As their memories return, they find out just why the spirits sent them there. Time Travel. Rated T for gore.
1. Awakening

AN: Rewrite of The Red.

* * *

From Red to White

_"Everyone has hidden talents. Some are buried so deep within us that we might never have the strength to pull them out on a whim. But when it shows itself, it will erupt from within, unleashing a power like we have never imagined."_

* * *

Original Timeline Kakashi's POV:

Kakashi Hatake would never tell anyone that the strongest emotion he held within himself is hate. He would never tell Naruto, his shining student, that the most driving force in his life was hate. He would never tell Sakura, his brightest student, of the horrible insidious darkness that he kept locked away inside his heart. He would never tell Sasuke, his wayward student, that he himself was lost in a shadow darker and deeper than Sasuke's own.

He would never tell them how much he hated himself.

He hated himself for shunning his father and pushing him to suicide. He hated himself for killing Rin, for not having the speed or skill to divert his screaming chakra. He hated himself for failing Obito as a friend, and as his killer, being unable to deal the final blow. He hated himself for letting Minato-sensei and Kushina die, and for leaving Naruto all alone during his childhood. He hated himself for not being able to do anything as everyone was _slaughtered_ by the Jubi.

But he hated himself most for surviving. For outliving them.

So Kakashi pushed himself to exhaustion for three days straight as he searched for anyone, _anyone_ who might have survived like he did. All that he saw was the massive pools of blood that littered the landscape and the rotting corpses of the fallen.

The thirty year old walked up to each of the corpses silently and placed his hand on each of the heads. He said a silent prayer to the death god and paid his respects to each of them before walking off numbly.

Suddenly, he coughed harshly, and stained the front of his mask crimson. He tore it off angrily and left his face bare in the August sun.

Kakashi knew that he was slowly dying. He knew the signs of exhaustion and dehydration even the state he was in. He had eaten half a meal in three days and could only drink whatever water he found that wasn't contaminated with the omnipresent stain of blood. He wouldn't and couldn't resort to eating corpses, even if he was able to stomach the thought of _eating_ human flesh. That was just wrong, no matter how hungry or thirsty he was. Running himself into the ground wasn't going to help his chances of recovering from dehydration anyway.

Kakashi was fine with that.

He pulled himself up off of the ground, _(just when had he fallen?_) and ignored the sharp pain in his chest as he began walking in a random direction. He felt his steps falter slightly as his shoe was sucked into the wet earth and his momentum pulled it back out with a squelch.

His vision was blurring.

His limbs were getting numb.

Where was he going again?

What was he doing?

His saw the world bounce and tip on its side and in a final moment of understanding, Kakashi welcomed the embrace of the afterlife.

* * *

Still Original Kakashi's POV: (location unknown)

Kakashi slammed into the floor hard.

He pushed himself up to his feet and clutched at his head at the phantom pain. Ugh, his head felt like someone had tried to clean it with sandpaper, squeezed out its insides, and then stuffed it with cotton balls. He opened his eye and gazed upon the darkness around him. Pitch blackness and a dark maroon blurred together in the distance.

He saw a figure walking towards him.

He tried to make out what it was and, despite being able to see everything else in the landscape clearly, he wasn't able to identify it. He then tried to call up his chakra to make a small light in his palm.

Nothing.

_Pitiful. It still believes it has the powers of the living._

Kakashi whirled around at the sound of the voice echoing behind him and he was blindsided by the dark figure that was present there. He flew to the right as the momentum pushed him to the floor.

_It is ridiculous that it has escaped me for so long. Yet now, I see that even in death, it has the scent of the living._

Kakashi pushed himself up weakly and turned to glare at the figure. It was a black silhouette of a person and it moved towards him with an unearthly grace. Somehow, within his tattered mind, he knew that this was the death god. And now he was going to receive his punishment for the deeds of his life.

He sat on his knees and looked up resolutely at it. He deserved the punishment. _Hatehatehatehate._

The figure pulled him up by the chin and Kakashi stared into the figure's facelessness.

_How much longer will you defy me, human? In life you reek of death, and in death you somehow cling to the scent of life. _

It pulled Kakashi up off the ground by the throat and he felt the feeling of needing to choke; to gasp for the life sustaining air when he knew that he was dead.

_There is nothing left for you here but death. Cease clinging to your wretched life._

Suddenly, Kakashi felt something building up within his stomach and force itself into his body painfully.

Both he and the figure screamed.

_What is this? What are you?!_

Kakashi clutched his head as the rest of his body felt an electric sting of a new chakra. Pure, searing, and bright. It was his, yet not. Familiar, yet so painfully different. Nothing and everything all at once.

_Descendent of Hankou Hatake! Leave! Get out! You do not belong here, Half-life!_

Kakashi suddenly felt himself drop right through the floor, falling and falling away from the faceless being.

There were things attacking him at all sides as he curled up to try and shield himself from the blows. Most of them hit his back right between the shoulder blades and caused a piercing pain. Others struck his face and his eyes, and all of them tore into him, forcibly pulling the new chakra out of him. But his body just produced more and the process repeated itself. Over. And Over.

And thus Kakashi Hatake fell.

* * *

Mind-wiped Old/Original Timeline Kakashi's POV:

Ever so slowly, he opened his eyes as his limbs began to regain feeling.

_"Where...am I?"_ He thought. _"What...happened to me?"_ Suddenly realizing that he was awake, he pushed himself to his feet and looked around rapidly for anyone who might be attacking him. He waited. After five minutes he deemed the area safe enough to travel in and began walking.

He couldn't explain it, but there was a certain allure of the direction that he was going in. Nothing he could have said would have been able to explain the feeling that he was experiencing now, but he knew that wherever he was going would give him the answers he needed.

He wandered along to find a road heading east and into the direction of the rising sun. He kept his eyes to the ground as he turned towards the mountain looming in the distance. He felt, a certain kind of homecoming by going towards it. A kind of nostalgia that reminded him of his childhood. Before...

He paused in thought, searching through his memories for the right one. Before... what exactly?

He shuffled through his thoughts and tried to pull up the memory tugging at his mind. It was an important date, tied to a feeling of guilt and regret. But... it was just a blank space.

He reached up and touched his closed left eye involuntarily. He couldn't remember what it was, and the more he thought about it the more his head began to hurt. A gnawing aching pain settled itself what felt to be right behind his left eye in what he thought was a familiar way. When he tried to pull at that memory, a flash of white hot hurt and betrayal coursed through him along with a wild mix of guilt, regret, and determination.

This memory wasn't happy either.

He continued on his way and tugged slightly at the white scarf around his neck. He pulled it upward, towards his face and felt a comfort at having the cloth over his bare skin. He fingered his white jacket with his gloved hands, pulling slightly on the long sleeves. He wasn't uncomfortable with the attire that he was in but he felt like his clothes shouldn't be so... he looked at the white jacket and black undershirt... monochromatic. Like they were missing color or something.

Another thing was that he felt as if he should be at least four inches taller. He feels like he had shrunk and when he touches the young healthy face of someone no older than twenty, he feels like his face should have more wrinkles in it.

He pushed the thought away as he continued on the road. The sun was rising slowly, and soon he found himself before a grand wall with green gates. The road led into a large city heralding large green trees, a tall tower in the distance, and a carving of stone faces in the plateau beyond.

As he stepped in through the gates, he felt a something that warmed him from the tips of his sandaled toes to the roots of his silver hair.

He was home.

Suddenly he felt a malicious presence from above and a figure appeared to drop right out of the sky. On instinct, he jumped backwards and reached for his right leg where an odd pouch was strapped to him with a buckle and some white tape. He looped his finger through a metal ring and pulled out a small double edged knife.

_Kunai_. His brain answered for him. The figure attacked him again by throwing small cross shaped blades at him. His body reacted again and reversing his grip, he used the kunai to block all of them in one swipe. The figure charged forward, pulling out a short dagger, _tanto_, and striking him with it rapidly.

_Dodge, block, attack, dodge, block._ His body told him. He could tell that the blur of color before him was angry, no, absolutely _livid_ with him. He didn't know why.

He pushed the figure away from him with a strong kick and took a good look at his attacker. Silver hair, a masked face, and a familiar white chakra blade rested in the hands of a boy no older than twelve. The expression from his eyes was furious.

The boy darted forward again and swung at him with the blade infused with white chakra.

Then he felt a buildup of searing energy within him and he moved to stop the oncoming blade with his own, now infused with the same white energy.

Suddenly he felt his left eye snap open and track a blur of yellow and green as it flipped between them; pulling the familiar looking boy back and sending a kick towards him. He watched as a hand reached out to touch him and he pulled away from both of them just in time, thankful for his fast reaction speed.

"Who are you?" The yellow blur asked him. A blonde man materialized besides the silver haired boy. The man didn't take his eyes off of him for a second. "Do you know him?"

The boy scowled, visible even with his mask. "Can't you see he's-" The blonde silenced him with a hand.

"I'll ask again, who are you?"

He felt himself try to answer, but the words died on his lips. _Who _was_ he?_ He tried to pull up the information again but again his memory failed him.

_I don't know._ He tried to say but no sound came out of his mouth.

He touched his lips in shock and the kunai fell from his hand. _What_? he tried again. Nothing but a puff of air flew from his throat.

His hands flew into a series of panicked signs that his brain connected to words. 'What's going on? Who are you people?'

Both the blonde and the boy's eyes widened in understanding as the signs registered. He was mute and apparently he wasn't the person that the boy thought he was as he lowered his weapon immediately.

"I'm sorry my student attacked you, sir." The blonde apologized, but kept his suspicious gaze. "You are quite skilled." _In ninja arts_, his brain filled in the unsaid words. "What's your name?"

'Don't know..." He signed sadly. 'Don't remember.' he explained in gestures.

"No name?" the blonde asked again. He nodded. "Well, my name is Minato Namikaze and this here is my student Kakashi Hatake." he pointed to the boy. "I'm quite curious as to how you learned to fight like that. It's not every day a person as skilled as yourself pops out of nowhere."

He wasn't paying too much attention to what he said after that. All he could think about was...

'Ha-ta-ke?' he signed the syllables laboriously. 'I know that name.'

"Why did you come to Konoha?" Minato stressed before answering his unasked question.

He remembered the feeling that had bloomed in his chest when he had entered through those green gates and smiled to himself.

'Home.' He signed simply. 'Feels like home.' he pulled up the boy's name again. 'Ka-ka-shi Ha-ta-ke. Familiar too.' He signed.

"Hatake-san?" The blonde tried, incredulously. He felt himself perk up at the name. He found himself nodding.

"Sakumo Hatake?" The boy tried, tense. He felt his insides clench at the name.

'No. Familiar.' he signed. 'Not me. Very important though.' he added after.

"Kakashi, did your father talk about any of his family members that had may have left Konoha?" Minato asked.

The boy shook his head. "No, _he_ didn't talk about family at all besides mom." he said as he looked at him curiously.

He felt slightly offended at the boy's questioning gaze. 'Not mother.' He signed insistently.

Minato burst out laughing as Kakashi turned away flushed. Minato calmed after a bit and then asked him seriously. "Do you remember anything? Anything about who you are or why you are so skilled?"

Instantly a single word popped into his head.

'War' he signed. 'To protect loved ones and home.'

He looked at his hands as he stretched them out in front of him.

'I hate war.'

* * *

Alternate Timeline Kakashi's POV:

Kakashi coughed and blood sprayed out to coat the inside of his mask with the crimson liquid. He tore the fabric off with a weakened hand and threw it as far as he could. He inhaled through his nose and tried to locate his teammates as his right side was crushed and his left eye was gone.

"Obito, Rin, are you guys okay?" He rasped through the blood. He hears both of them gasp in horror as he feels the dust from the cave in settle on his face.

"KAKASHI!" They both scream. He hears the pitter patter of their feet as they run towards him. He breathes in through his nose again, finding comfort in their familiar scents and etching it into his mind. A hand grabs his and he hears Obito throw his weight against the boulder that has crushed his right side.

"Don't bother with it... dobe. You can't beat a rock." He says as he hears the continued struggles. "It's okay. I can't even feel the pain anymo-" He cuts himself off as he feels a warm, wet droplet hit his face. Then another. And another. They slide down his cheek towards his mouth and he is able to taste it through the blood. Tears.

"Kakashi..." He hears Rin crying.

"You BASTARD! Why, Teme?! WHY?!" He hears Obito scream at him as he falls to his knees beside Kakashi's body, sobbing. "Why did you push me out of the way?! Why would you sacrifice your life for me?!"

Kakashi can't help it when a weak chuckle escapes him and his mouth twitches up into a smile.

"I have to explain everything to you, don't I... dobe?" He laughs through the blood. He gives a cough at that and then swallows the coppery liquid so that he can continue. "I finally... understand... why my father would choose a life of scorn... for the safety of his comrades." He says. "When push comes to shove, I would always take the place of death for a comrade." He reached up and caught Obito's face with his palm. "'Those who break the rules are scum... but those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum.'" He quoted. Kakashi gives another chuckle as he practically _feels_ Obito's astonishment.

"But," He hears Obito say. "But you're the leader! The leader isn't supposed to sacrifice himself for his men! He's supposed to stay with them until the end!"

"Ah," Kakashi says. "I suppose... that I should give you something... to remember me by. Think of it as a memento of you 'leader'." He says. Using the bits of chakra and strength he has left, he pulls off the White Fang from his back. "Take it, Obito. Take Sensei's kunai too and listen to what I'm about to explain to you. My last lecture to you."

"Don't say that!" Obito says frantically. "It can't be your last! It won't!"

"_Listen!_" Kakashi demands and Obito falls silent. "There are three hand signs to the Chidori: Ox, Hare, and Monkey. It takes a large amount of lightning chakra, concentrated in the palm. Chakra change in form is then used to create the sharp piercing effect, the balance scattering of the chakra, and the chirping bird sound. It is to be delivered at high speeds as a straight charge at the opponent." He coughs slightly and he feels Rin apply some of her medical ninjutsu to help him breathe. "It's an incomplete move, as it puts the user in danger to counterattack because it must be delivered in a straight line and because of the tunnel vision it produces."

"If you weren't able to complete it, how do you think I will? You're the genius not me." Obito argues.

"The Sharingan." Kakashi states simply. "I saw how you read that guy's movements while we fought in the cave. With the Sharingan... you should be able to use it without being in danger of a not seeing a counterattack."

"Rin," He says.

"Yes?" She asks, still applying her jutsu.

"Take care of Obito. He loves you, you know." He listens as they both sputter in embarrassment despite the situation. He brings their attention back to him.

"This is my last orders to you. Both of you." He said to them. "Protect the people closest to you, before they disappear, and never change yourself because of what other people tell you."

Suddenly Kakashi tensed and he felt and smelt the arrival of reinforcements. For the other side.

"They're coming." He says ominously. "Go." He says.

"But-"

"GO!" He hears them both scramble up and out of the cave just before the rocks begin crumbling around him.

The stones piece him and push against him and Kakashi knows that he will die.

In those last moments of life, despite the overwhelming regret in his stomach, he finally feels a flutter of hope in his chest. Hope for a future he will never see.

* * *

Still Alternate Timeline Kakashi's POV:(location unknown)

Kakahshi finds himself lying on his side in a dark room.

He sees a figure approach him.

_A different one from before._

Kakashi glares at it defiantly. A white aura envelops him. Protecting him.

_It's still the same as the other. Cast it away._

And then he is falling. Like a bird with clipped wings.

* * *

Alternate/Younger Kakashi's POV:

He wakes up to the sounds and smells of the forest and he feels a ray of sunshine warm his face. When he opens his eyes he screams.

There is nothing, nothing but a blur of light as he gets up and stumbles around, blind.

He feels the grass underneath his hands as he falls to his knees. He smells its sweetness as he buries his face in its blades. He hears the faint rustles in the wind as he _knows_ the grass sways. But he can see none of the greenness. There are no individual blades moving in his vision.

He hears voices. They are familiar as he pulls himself up off of the ground and onto his knees. Everything around him seems to lose its vitality as he sees nothing but blurs of white, gray and black.

"I swear I hears someone over here scream!"

"You're just saying that to scare me!"

"No! I wouldn't do that! Just... come with me to find out what it is!"

"Obito Uchiha, if you end up scaring me..."

"Rin! If someone's here they probably need help!"

He stands and starts running towards the voices. He stretches out his hands to help him sense any upcoming obstacles.

It isn't enough as he soon crashes into something with a yelp.

"Omigosh! It's a kid!" the boy from before says. "Hey! Sorry about that! Are you okay?"

There is a yelp of surprise and pain from the boy.

"Don't scare me like that!" The girl says. "Hey, do you need any help?"

Something about those voices resonates within him and he is overwhelmed with the twisting emotions of happiness and fear. He feels younger all of a sudden. Like a child who is barely four.

So he begins to cry.

The two kids who discovered him begin to panic and he is soon lifted up into a hug by a pair of arms. He grips onto the person's shirt for all its worth and he tries to pinpoint why the person's scent seems so familiar.

"Don't cry! Please don't cry!" The boy says to him from above.

"Don't be scared. There's no one here that's going to hurt you." The girl says.

He snuggles into the boy's shoulder and finally calms down after a few minutes.

"I wonder what Kakashi-teme would do if he saw this kid. I swear he's the spitting image of the Hatake asshole." The boy said, probably thinking him to be asleep.

"Don't say that! What if he isn't asleep?" The girl says frantically.

He perks up at the name.

"Hatake?" He says as the name begins to ring familiar bells in his head. "Kakashi Hatake?" He says.

"Uh... yeah. He's our teammate." The boy says nervously. "Why do you ask?"

"Hatake, Hatake, Hatake." He says in a kind of trance. He just keeps repeating it over and over in his head. "Hatake. Why is that so familiar?" He asks aloud. "What's a Hatake?"

"If all Hatakes are like the one I know, their all jerks." The boy says to him.

"Obito!" The girl scolds. "Well they have silver hair and they wear masks all the time." She explained.

"Silver." He repeated.

"Yeah, like yours. If you were to take your black scarf and fold it over the lower part of your face, you would look just like Kakashi." She said half in a cooing voice.

"What colors are your hair?" He asks, trying to create a mental picture for himself of what they looked like. "What do you look like?"

"What do you mean 'what do we look like'?" The boy asks, offended. "Can't you see us right in front of you?" Came the scoff.

"No." He replied. "I can't see."

The boy choked on his tongue. He felt the grip on him tighten. The girl gasped to his right in understanding.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't realize-" The boy sputtered.

"It's okay." He said. "But can you say you're teammate's name again? I can't remember anything, but something about his name is familiar."

The girl hurries to oblige. "Kakashi Hatake."

He feels a piece of his memory come back as he yells out, "Hatake!"

"What about him?" The boy says with a slightly bitter tone.

"I'm a Hatake!" He says, and he feels the pain of regret creep into his stomach as he associates other things with the name. People he failed.

* * *

AN: I finally got this done! I will be updating one of my stories once a week, either Riddled or this one and I hope that you all enjoy the beginning of this rewirte!


	2. Taint

AN: Updates are on Saturdays now. I don't own Naruto. I am crazy. Et cetera.

* * *

Chapter 2

* * *

Older Mind-wiped Kakashi's POV:

As a precaution, Minato had insisted that his wrists and fingers be tied together behind his back in such a manner that would make hand signs impossible. Hatake didn't argue. Although he didn't quite trust them, he didn't want to get on the bad side of the blonde ninja. He wasn't one that the Hatake would want to cross.

When they reached the gates once again, Anbu instantly appeared at their side.

One with long blonde dirty hair silently tipped his head to the side at Minato in question.

"The rope is just a precaution, Boar." Minato said. "He shouldn't be any sort of trouble but we need him escorted to T&I for a mental evaluation."

Even with only one eye, Hatake's attention was drawn to the slight stiffening of the Anbu's shoulders as the squad flanked their small group in a single file line. He let his eye drift to make contact with the so called 'Boar's' eyes from behind the mask. Who was he? Why did he seem almost... He looked for the proper word for it. His mind almost went into shock when He found the right word. _Fear._ That man was _afraid_ of him.

Hatake stopped in his tracks as he pondered how he knew that the Anbu were afraid, or at the very least tense, around him.

"Hatake-san?" He turned to see Minato looking back at him concerned. He looked pointedly at the stiff masked nin and then questioningly back at Minato. He then swore he saw the blonde man had winced at that.

"You... just look so identical to him that it makes even ninja veterans like me feel... uneasy." He said deliberately. "The sooner we see the Hokage and get you through T&I the better."

He nodded once, though he was confused as to who all these people thought that he was, and continued walking. He wondered what sort of person could have left such an impact on people who may or may not have really known each other.

He also wondered if this person, was actually him.

The trip was long, and it seemed like he was being paraded through the village like a wanted criminal, from the looks of disgust and hatred he was receiving. For some unknown reason, though, several times he got glared at, Kakashi was glared at too. The maskless Hatake bristled at that, and sent chilling glares right back to every person who's hatred swerved onto the younger.

Kakashi was a ninja of this village for Kami's sake. Just because they looked alike did not give any of those people the right to incriminate the boy. For some reason, he knew that their hatred was misplaced.

He hated ignorant people who did stupid things like that.

After about twenty minutes of walking, they arrived at a tall red tower with the insignia for Fire emblazoned on it. He had also successfully wedged Kakashi between himself and an Anbu to shield him from the view of any glaring onlookers. As they walked up the spiraling stairs, he looked to his right and up at the three faces carved into the mountainside.

Suddenly he felt uneasy. He felt like something, no _somethings_, were missing from the image.

He wasn't sure how he should feel about that.

Their group stopped right outside the entrance to the building and an Anbu pulled out a black piece of cloth from his pocket and motioned Minato to tie it around Hatake's eyes. Minato took it and eyed Hatake warily as he approached and tied the material on him. Hatake felt the man's fingers brush against the vertical scar on his eye and the involuntary twitch that had followed.

He knew what the other man was thinking. His eye should have been ruined, yet the telltale signs of a functional eye spoke otherwise. He must have had previously had some sort of eye transplant to gain vision back in his left eye, and there was definitely more to it than that. There had to be.

He was then guided along by two people on both sides, holding him by the arms, and into a place where their footsteps echoed mutedly as they walked. It must have been a long hallway of sorts. They then turned into another room as someone opened the door to let them in.

He practically felt the silence that followed and he was suddenly aware of more people in the room.

Hatake felt his muscles stiffen as he felt a whoosh of air and a small body tackle his leg and cling to it like a leech.

But he almost collapsed in shock when the little leech had called him _Tou-san_.

Something clicked within Hatake's mind and he felt an almost constricting connection to the child. Never had he met this boy in his life, he knew for sure, and yet the feeling remained. He was family, yet not. Closer and at the same time, so distant. The only thing that was remotely comparable to the mysterious feeling was a father-son relationship; one that he had never been on the father side of. However, considering the gaki clinging to him _couldn't_ be _his_ father, the warmth he felt pushing aside the initial shock must have been his parental instinct kicking in.

It felt as if he had stumbled upon something so precious and so pure that he couldn't help but treasure it.

That feeling, though, was short lived, as he heard one of the Anbu snatch away the child lightning quick and two others held him in place. He struggled desperately against them, but a chakra seal was slapped on him by a nearby Minato he suspected, and pushed gracelessly to his knees. A scream from the child was joined by two others, perhaps Kakashi's age, but all three voices were silenced quickly.

He felt a burning hate well up within his stomach.

"Boar, Rabbit, that is enough." An old deep voice said. "The man has done nothing to provoke our ire." The Anbu beside him silently released their hold on him but he didn't hear them move away from his position. Hatake grits his teeth and then uses a long, almost canine incisor to bite his lower lip.

The hate subsides as the pain numbs him and Hatake is deathly calm.

"You are a Hatake, no?" the old man asks, genially. Hatake doesn't move.

"Are you familiar with Konoha?" Again Hatake greets the question with silence.

"Did you know Sakumo?" A hazy image of long silver hair and a tired expression appears in his mind, but he does nothing to suggest he is familiar with the name.

"I'm not going to get any answers out of you am I?" More of a statement then a question. Hatake just continues to kneel silently.

"Kakashi, do you recognize him at all?" the man addressed the younger.

There is a moment of quiet before Kakashi answers. "I thought he was my father at first." He said. "But my father not only looks different, but he is dead. My only concern is that this man, was able to use White Chakra."

"White Chakra?" The old man asked.

"It's... a lost art of the Hatake bloodline." Kakashi said. "_He_ could use it. But he abandoned me before he taught me anything about it. I found out about it in one of the old scrolls afterwards."

Hatake felt his insides tighten. Abandoned? Something must have shown on his face because the old man addressed him once again.

"Is this true?"

As if his chakra had heard him, it built up inside him, forcibly breaking the seal, burning off his bindings and blowing off his blindfold. He felt his body shrinking, shedding unnecessary fat to replace it with muscle and sinew. His clothes melted into him as the white aura of chakra grew. His hearing became sharper as well as his sense of smell and he felt his incisors lengthen into fangs. White fur covered his entire body as strong paws and a tattered tail completed the transformation.

He knew who he was then. His memories flooding back in a rush of red. He was _Wolf._ He was the _Copy Ninja._ He was _Commander_. His name was _Kakashi Hatake._

Hatake's eyes snapped open to reveal deep charcoal black and clear crimson red with a vertical slit for a pupil.

He snarled, baring gleaming white teeth, and then in a streak of white, he escaped the room.

* * *

Minato's Mysterious POV:

When the mysterious Hatake was finally tracked down, he was found still in wolf form at the obsidian Memorial stone. Dutifully, like a guard dog, he was instantly on his feet when Minato approached him and snarling warily with his teeth bared. He was protecting their memories, even if they were not yet carved into the stone.

In an instant, a black figure attacked the wolf with a vicious kick and then rounded on Minato and the Anbu he was with. Feeling the dark killing intent that the figure was exuding, Minato sprang into action and tried to engage into combat with it. The thing sent him reeling back with a single kick and then followed it up with a shunshin and a wickedly fast sucker punch. Minato knew from that moment that he was outmatched, severely. Even with his speed, all he could do was try and dodge as his movements felt hazy and his reactions slow. He also had comrades to look out for.

A backfist to the back of his head sent him to the ground as his consciousness began to fade rapidly. The last thing he sees is a blur of white before he blacked out.

* * *

Older Kakashi's POV:

When the black figure attacked him, he knew instantly who it was.

The blow had been more than just an attack, because the black aura that tainted his chakra like a poisonous oil was a chakra that he would never forget. He was forced back into human form and writhed in pain as the Taint curled painfully within his chakra coils. Using his own chakra, he pulled on the White Chakra and his body burned as he felt the chakra purify the Taint in his body.

The pain slowly subsided.

By this time he felt the spike of chakra in the air and rushed towards it, knowing that Minato and _him_ were battling it out.

He lunged forward, in front of Minato as the man falls to the ground, and sends crackling lightning at the blob of black. The figure dodges, but still gets a glancing blow from the spark-like energy.

It hisses slightly and turns toward him in surprise, clearly not thinking that he would be _moving_ anytime soon. It snarls slightly as he rushes at it with two hands of bright lightning chakra.

Clearly not as powerful as it had been before, it was forced to jump back and fade out of existence in retreat.

He cursed at it silently, but he heard a groan from one of the people behind him and he rushed to help them. He felt like cursing again once he saw the wounds covered in the black Taint. He placed his hand on the most injured Anbu's most severe wounds and pushed his chakra into it. He then drew out the Taint and pulled it into his own body, purifying it while he used his meager medical ninjutsu skills to close up the gash as best as he could.

He felt the Anbu's heartbeat stutter.

_No._

It began decreasing at a rapid rate. It stuttered again. Then it faded.

_Damn it._

He moved on to the next Anbu. Already dead. He had bled out from the slice across his abdomen.

_**Damn it.**_

He then made a shadow clone and went to the last Anbu, who despite having a strong heartbeat, wasn't breathing as his clone went to Minato. He now expertly removed the Taint and he found that the Anbu had blood in his lungs and shattered ribs. He carefully sat the man up, pulled the porcelain mask up past his mouth, opened it, and then pushed his chakra into the man's lungs. The Anbu coughed violently, as his airways cleared, and sprayed crimson spots all over his uniform.

He then laid the man down on his back and pulled the Anbu's arms over his head to reset his broken ribs. The Anbu cried out in pain as his ribs moved back into place and he coughed up another spray of blood. Hatake then tried his best to ease the man's pain until help arrived. He stuck his fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly and sharply, trying to get someone's attention, and then concentrated on the Anbu's wounds.

His hands turned green with healing chakra as he tried his best to stop the blood from flowing into the man's lungs and depriving his body of its essentials. It was working. He was buying time for the medics. Beside him, his clone was helping Minato up from the ground.

_'Medic!'_ he signed desperately to a half lucid Minato. _'Need a medic now!'_

If Minato didn't understand, his clone sure did, as it threw Minato over its shoulder and took off towards the hospital.

When he felt the man's heart stutter, he nearly panicked and pushed more healing chakra into the man.

_Don't bleed out. Please don't bleed out._ He repeated the mantra in his head over and over.

He was surprised, however, when the Anbu spoke.

"Who are you?" He was able to whisper. "What... are you doing to me?" The edge of panic was clear in his voice.

In response, Hatake just pushed flare healing chakra into the wound, desperately trying to stem the blood.

"A medic?" The Anbu asked. He huffed a small laugh. "I thought I was so far gone that I was hallucinating. There's no medic on our team, and most medics don't volunteer to get involved with Anbu." The Anbu said sadly. But Hatake took that as a good sign. He was breathing easier, and retained the ability to speak. He could survive this. The bleeding was stopping.

"I thought I was going to..." The Anbu trailed off. _To die_. Hatake finished for him in his head. "Not speaking, huh?" He asked him. Hatake was silent, unable to answer. "I guess I'll just keep going then. I'll try to stay awake, okay?" Hatake nodded even though the porcelain mask was pushed up on the Anbu's face and into the dark spikes of hair, blocking his sight.

"Introductions first, huh? I guess I'll tell you, even though it's against the rules. My name is Kuroshi Uchiha. My codename is Bobcat. I like tomatoes and dango. I don't like my stuck up clan's rules or that stupid Fugaku who keeps picking on that poor Obito kid."

Hatake was surprised at what Kuroshi said. An Uchiha who despised tradition? Who didn't like how Fugaku was so harsh with Obito? That was rare. Like one in every seven generations rare.

" My hobbies consist of reading and... pranking I guess." he paused a bit in thought. "If you call pissing off the elders pranking. My dream... is to find peace." He chuckled again. Then frowned. "I don't think I've ever been able to tell someone all that. I've never told anyone that, ever. I always acted like... _the rest of them_." He almost spat.

Hatake stared at the Uchiha in shock. Discreetly pissing off elders? Finding peace? A random _change of heart?_ What the hell was going on?

"Now that I've told you I feel... lighter. And... cleaner." He chuckled a bit to himself again. "Like someone went and took all the skeletons out of my closet."

Hatake let the healing jutsu fade as his expertise ended at stopping someone from bleeding out and had Kuroshi cough up the remnants of the blood still in his chest. Then he laid him down and tried his best to make the other comfortable. When he was finished, he silently sat by his side, not wanting to move him and cause further injury to his broken ribcage, waiting for the medics to come.

After a bit, the Anbu shifted nervously at the silence.

"Hello? Are you still here? Medic?" He asked, far too weak from blood loss to do any movement more strenuous than speaking. Hatake wasn't paying much attention anymore his clone popped and he saw people rushing towards them in the distance.

He immediately got up and desperately signed to the group as they came towards the battle site.

'Ambushed. Two dead. One injured and barely conscious. Needs immediate medical attention.' He gestured urgently. When he saw them tense up as if he was going to attack them, he held his hands up in the universal sign of surrender and then pointed insistently at Kuroshi. He then helped the medical team get the Anbu onto a stretcher and rush him over to the hospital.

_Don't die. Don't die. Please don't die._

* * *

Older Kakashi's/Kikuto's POV:

When he was rushed back to the Hokage's office after the incident, he told the Sandaime everything he could about the fight. Of course, he left out the important detail that he knew the mysterious assailant, but he left no other detail out, including the analysis of the White Chakra and its 'healing' properties.

The Hokage was still suspicious of him though, as he was the only one who was came out of the battle with minor injuries, and Hatake didn't blame him. So told them that he was willing to help in any way that he could.

Inoichi was brought into the office then and the Sandaime explained that the interrogator would prove whether he was innocent or not. He would have panicked slightly if he hadn't already taken the precaution of sealing up his memories of the future tighter than Naruto's headband when he was alone with the Anbu.

Instead he submitted to the memory search quietly, and passed with flying colors. They settled on the name of Kikuto Hatake for the official papers and the newly named Kikuto decided that the boy's name, his _'son's'_ name would be Kazu. After everything was said, or signed in Kikuto's case, and done, he was allowed to leave in peace.

His worries, however, were far from over.

After he had proved not to be a threat to the village, Tsunade had barged into the room demanding to see the medic who had worked on Minato and Kuroshi immediately. Hesitantly, Kikuto raised a hand to tell her that it was him. She literally stomped up to him and dragged him back to the hospital with her by the shirt.

Once in her office, he was pinned against the wall as she demanded he explain why Minato was practically _suffocating_ his students and his fiancé with affection after receiving a mild concussion and why there was an _Uchiha_ Anbu who was _smiling_ and _playing with a child_ even after having his ribcage practically crushed.

He wanted to ask if the child was the boy he named Kazu, but he didn't dare. When he frantically tried to sign to her that it was some after effect of his chakra purification, she just lifted him off the ground (and made him feel the burn of emasculation) and screamed in his face.

"Speak up! What did you do to them?!"

Kikuto tapped his lips and then throat and shook his head, hopeful that he was able to convey to her that he was mute. She set him down after that, much to his relief, and repeated her second question.

"What did you _do_ to them?!"

'Enemy used dark chakra. It Tainted their chakra. I was able to remain relatively unharmed because my White Chakra can purify it.' He signed lengthily. 'Perhaps too pure now?' he signed sheepishly.

She still wasn't convinced.

"Show me this White Chakra."

He held out a hand and twisted his chakra into the white energy he had used to get rid of the Taint.

There was a moment of silence before Tsunade literally dragged him out of her office and towards the hospital rooms. She didn't even knock as she entered Room 264 and pulled Kikuto to the room with a heavily bandaged, but recovering Kuroshi who was sitting up in his bed filling out paperwork.

Immediately, the Uchiha stopped what he was doing when they entered and a pleasant smile bloomed on his face.

"Is this him?" Kuroshi asked Tsunade.

"You shouldn't be sitting up! Lay back down in that bed right now, Uchiha! Do you _want _to re-break that ribcage of yours?" Tsunade yelled instead of answering. "Right?" She asked turning to him. Kikuto stiffened slightly as the attention was put solely on him and Kuroshi looked at him expectantly.

He nodded slightly.

Kuroshi laughed, but reached back to prop up his pillow so he could lay down and sit up slightly at the same time. "I feel so much freer now, after you treated me. What exactly happened? I know I got hit by this black energy, and it hurt. It was so dark and it made me feel like the weight of the mask was going to crush me." He trailed off.

Kikuto nodded in understanding. More than once, Anbu have succumbed to what was called 'the mask's burden' and either went off the deep end, resigned from Anbu, or got killed in action. One of the reasons why he had been practically legendary within Anbu was because he withstood 'the mask's burden' for over half a decade when most Anbu never stayed in Anbu for more than a few years and didn't go on nearly as many missions as he had.

"You've got a healing talent if you can take away the burden of Anbu with a simple chakra treatment." Kuroshi said seriously. He turned to Tsunade. "I haven't been brainwashed or anything like that." He told her. "I'm just saving my bad attitude for later when Fugaku finds out that I quit Anbu and am seceding from the clan."

Kikuto choked on his tongue and Tsunade's jaw practically fell off.

"What?!" She said. "Why in Kami's name would you do that?"

Kuroshi snickered a very Uchiha-like snicker. "I may only be twenty, but I've seen enough of this world to know that Fugaku's foolish ideals of clan before village, before _loved ones_ is complete and utter bullshit." He said unabashedly. "I lost more than just _teammates_ today in that ambush. I lost _friends_. And I am not going to go back like the unfeeling prick I used to be. No, I'm gonna be the prick with the opinion that _matters_ because I _know better_ than to swallow _lies_ because it feeds my ego." He said confidently under his still amicable smile. "He better be ready for me when shit hits the fan."

"What caused this change of heart?" Tsunade asked in astonishment. Kikuto is wondering the same thing.

Kuroshi's smile falls off his face and is replaced by a frown.

"When you get the guilt and regret and sadness of you past thrown back at you _tenfold_, you realize that you were stupid and ignorant and that you absolutely _have_ to change things or you might go insane knowing that someone you care about could end up _just like you or worse._"

Tsunade shakes her head and says, "Save me from reckless people. You better stay in that bed for the rest of the week. You hear me Uchiha? I will personally track you down and tie you to the bed if I have to."

Kuroshi snickered and Kikuto coughed awkwardly.

Tsunade blushed slightly at the insinuation but decided to drag Kikuto off to see Minato instead of retaliate.

When she barged in through the door this time, she was greeted by not one, not two, but _six_ surprised faces, and Kikuto was surprised that they all fit in the tiny room.

His heart nearly stopped when he saw his younger self frozen in the middle of playing stiffly with another, younger, silver haired boy and he probably would have stayed frozen in the doorway if Tsunade didn't decide to practically throw him at the two. Kakashi eyed him warily but Minato smiled at him brightly and Tsunade called out to the boy.

"Kazu, you father's back."

Kikuto reached out to the boy shakily as if he were afraid that he would break, but he managed to cup a calloused hand over the boy's cheek and brush away the tears that were falling from the young boy's sightless coal eyes. In an instant, the boy threw himself at him and clutched him hard as he cried into his shoulder. Kikuto gripped him just as tightly.

"Daddy... Daddy..." Kazu cried. Kikuto turned and kissed the top of his head before resting a cheek on it and rocking the boy back and forth. Kikuto knew right then, that even if the boy didn't turn out to be his son, he didn't care. This boy was _his baby_. And there was nothing _anyone_ could do about it.

Awws erupted from five of the room's occupants as Kakashi looked away jealously.

Spying a neglected family member, Kikuto opened up an arm to him too. For a moment Kakashi looked hopeful before he realized where he was and scowled and refused. Kikuto rolled his eyes at his younger self and remembered how much of a stuck up bastard he had been at that age. He looked to Kushina for help.

She smiled at him and gladly obliged, pushing the teen forward and closer to the hugging pair. Kakashi glared at her and then at Kikuto and Kikuto let out a wheezing laugh. That made Kazu look up from his father's shoulder and look at Kakashi with those two sightless pleading eyes.

Kakashi leaned forward.

* * *

AN: Whew... This was harder than I thought... *broods in a corner somewhere* Please review! Ideas come from reviewers too.


	3. Settling Down

AN: Sorry it's late again. I got a mysterious sickness known as the cold and it hit me with a vengeance yesterday afternoon while I was writing. This story will probably be Kikuto-centric since I fail at writing Kazu's POV. I hope this is worth it.

* * *

Chapter 3

* * *

Kikuto's POV:

A few days later, Kikuto and Kazu had settled in nicely in the small apartment that they had been granted by the Hokage. Clothes, food, and other utilities had been purchased along with basic education books and a stuffed toy mouse that Kazu had absolutely adored.

During the middle of the day, right after lunch, Kikuto gave Kazu a test on the 'tap code' that was standard for the Land of Fire. Because sound and touch were the only two ways of communication the two of them had in common, a way to speak to each other that was just as efficient as speaking was needed. Using the 'tap code' both of them would be able to either hear, or feel the message that the other was trying to convey. Kikuto would probably teach Kazu his own personal code later, once Kazu had mastered the first. He tapped out a message on the table and then waited for Kazu to respond back.

**Did you enjoy lunch today?** He asked in the code.

**Yes, Dad.** Kazu responded. **It was my favorite food. **Miso soup with eggplant. A traditional comfort food of the Hatake household.

Kikuto smiled gently and then clicked with his tongue instead of tapping on the table.

**An application to the Academy came in today. Would you be interested in becoming a ninja?** He asked.

**Is Tou-san a ninja?** The younger clicked back.

**Not yet.** Kikuto answered. **I'll be officially certified after I take the loyalty test later today.**

There was a knock at the door.

"I'll get it!" Kazu chirped aloud as he ran towards the door. Kikuto smiled again at his son's cheerfulness and began clearing the table. "Who is it?" he heard the four year old ask.

"Open up, Hatake!" Came a loud commanding female voice. Kikuto froze in his tracks. "It's time for your physical!"

Before Kikuto could do anything Kazu opened up the door with a bubbly, "Okay!"

Two familiar figures came in to the kitchen following a skipping Kazu. Tsunade and Kuroshi greeted him.

"If you're anything like the last two Hatake's I've had the pleasure of dealing with, you'll do anything and everything to skip out on hospital trips so I decided to come to you." The sannin said triumphantly. Kikuto wanted to glare at his son for unintentionally setting him up for torture, but the child's sunny expression snuffed out his anger like a candle.

Kuroshi cleared his throat. "Minato mentioned that you should have you eye looked at." He said at Kikuto's questioning glare. "The Uchiha are known for their expertise with the eyes. My job outside of Anbu is actually Optometry." He explained.

Kazu tugged lightly on Kuroshi's sleeve and the man crouched down to the boy's level.

"Can you fix _my_ eyes?" He asked innocently.

Silence practically echoed in the room at the question.

Completely unfazed, Kuroshi ruffled the boy's hair and said, "I'll do my best to figure out what's wrong with them, then I'll do what I can to get the doctors to try and fix you up."

Kazu nodded as sagely as a four year old could and then began pulling the ex-Anbu towards where he had memorized the couch to be. "Let's start now!" He smiled as he stared blankly at Kuroshi's head.

"Hn." The Uchiha said as he was pulled along.

Kikuto smiled at the scene but then realized the implications as only he and Tsunade were left in the kitchen. He considered darting for the door or the window to try and make an escape, but seeing the dangerous look in Tsunade's eyes, he quickly resigned to the nearest chair.

Thankfully, Tsunade kept it completely professional when examining him, even when she asked him to strip off his shirt for her to check for any injuries that he had neglected to tell her about. One thing did catch her attention though.

"There's a broken seal on your stomach." She stated carefully. Kikuto tilted his head to the side in question.

_'What seal?'_ he signed.

She placed a glowing hand on his lower abdomen and Kikuto gave a sharp gasp of pain. Instantly he swatted her hand away and clutched his stomach protectively. With a start he realized what he had done and relaxed from his defensive position. Tsunade eyed him like an injured beast as she approached him again. She place a hand on his shoulder both comfortingly and as a warning as she examined his stomach again.

"It's a containment seal that prevents a certain type of chakra from escaping the body. What's interesting to me is the fact that the seal seems to be imbedded in your chakra system instead of just holding onto it like normal containment seals." She observed. Kikuto stiffened slightly as she began applying chakra again. He fisted his shirt in his hands and then bit his lip to keep in the hiss of pain.

When she finished, she placed a finger on his lip and took his clenched fist in hers. The slice into his lower lip slowly vanished and the crescents of his fingernails disappeared from his palm.

"It seems to be genetic." She said. "The seal is something you were born with according to my analysis." Kikuto eyed her with confusion. "It's like any genetic seal on a kekkei genkai but yours is located on your stomach. After activation, it seems to linger there until the chakra system get used to the change in its pathways." She explained. "You must have awakened the White Chakra in you recently if this much chakra bruising is still present."

Kikuto was nodding when all of a sudden, she was peeling his left eye open and Kikuto jumped slightly in surprise as his vision changed drastically. Stark contrasting colors overlapped each other as his eye darted around at the colors. Sunny white and a calm crimson glowed form the other room as a brilliant fuchsia pink obscured most of his field of sight.

Then she let go of his head as his eye closed involuntarily and the bright colors vanished.

"Despite being red and rather creepy looking, your implanted eye seems healthy enough to me. Kuroshi should be done with Kazu soon. He'll do a better job at analyzing all of its functions than me."

Tsunade then put a hand on his throat and poured some chakra into it. Kikuto stiffened slightly as the memory of being choked flashed in his mind, but he squashed it down. After a while Tsunade bit her lip.

"Your vocal chords... have been surgically cauterized shut." She ground out. "Whoever did this, didn't want you to ever have the ability to speak again." Then she began muttering to herself about delicacies and chakra and some other things that he didn't understand.

Kikuto slowly blinked away the shock and pulled his shirt back on as Tsunade gave began filling out a medical exam form. "I'm going to do some research but when I'm ready, I'll call you in to see if they can be surgically repaired." She said. When she was finished and he was properly clothed she handed it to him to fill out the rest.

He checked the necessary boxes like gender, sexual preference and so on. He then signed the medical consent form in the shinobi section that stated that any time a medic wanted to give him an exam they were authorized to, even if he was unconscious or barely lucid.

A cough caused him to look up from the form and see Kuroshi standing in the kitchen in place of Tsunade.

"I thought that you should know that someone sabotaged you son's sight." He stated bluntly. Kikuto practically growled at that. "The optic nerve in his left eye is partially severed and practically shredded in his right. If it wasn't for the fact that the neural impulses to his brain are being blocked by a special surgical seal that is still in place, your son would be in some serious pain right now." The Uchiha began taking out his examination instruments as he continued speaking. "It's a miracle that he can see at all. We're taking him in for optical nerve repair as soon as I can clear it with the medical staff. But I'm going to warn you," He said seriously. "It's a long painful process, and there is no guarantee that he will regain his sight."

Kikuto nodded in understanding as he gripped the medical form in his hand tightly. Then he pulled over one of the many notebooks in the house and wrote down on the paper. _'My vocal chords were cauterized shut surgically as well according to Tsunade. Whoever did this to me, obviously had some of the same intentions as the person who blinded my son. Someone wanted to stop me from speaking and stop Kazu from seeing. They might even be the reason for our amnesia as well.'_

Kuroshi read the note as Kikuto wrote it out and then asked, "Who do you think could have wanted you silenced and Kazu unable to see?" He questioned seriously.

Kikuto shook his head. That was one question that he was wondering himself.

"Alright, on to business. Right eye first."

The exam went relatively well with his right eye but when they switched over to his left, several problems arose.

"Can you read this?" Kuroshi asked. Kikuto shook his head as he couldn't discern whatever was on the paper. He could track its movement precisely but he couldn't read a thing on the damned paper. Kuroshi took out another paper. "How about this?" Kikuto shook his head again. All he could see was the glowing crimson form of the man right in front of him. Kuroshi shuffled in his bag again and pulled out one last piece of paper. "And this?" A slight glow came from the paper and twisting lines of green appeared in his vision. He nodded slightly. "Interesting." Kuroshi said. "What is it?" He asked.

_'Paper bomb'_ Kikuto supplied. _'Intensity 5, Range 3, Delay 5.25'_

"Spot on." He complimented. He pulled out another one. "What about this?" Another paper with glowing lines appeared in his vision again.

_'Paralysis tag.'_ Kikuto signed. _'Intensity 2, Range 4, Duration 15, Delay 2.4'_

"Good. Your eye can see chakra residue. Now tell me, what does my chakra look like?" He asked as he pulled out a notebook and pen.

_'Red, slick, calm, intense, and sharp.'_ Kikuto described. Kuroshi nodded as he wrote something down. Then he put the notebook down.

"I'm going to get in a little close and personal." He warned. "I'm going to look at your eye with my Sharingan, so be warned."

Kikuto nodded and then Kuroshi bent down and looked into closely into his eye. He felt his own eye mirror the Sharingan's quick movements as it gazed into it. "Try to keep your eye stationary." Kuroshi said as he gripped the other's head and his breath puffed against Kikuto's face lightly at the proximity. The silver haired man focused his eye on the other's face where a small blemish seemed on the top of the man's eyebrow.

Memories from the war came crashing back into his mind as he recalled how Tobi had gazed menacingly into his left eye during their last confrontation. He jerked slightly in phantom panic at how close Kuroshi was as he remembered, but instantly calmed as he determined their chakra differences.

Kikuto forced himself to blink away the memory and continue to stare at the blemish as Kuroshi continued his intense examination. When the man pulled away, Kikuto closed his eye and opened the other, relishing in the sight of normal vision.

"Your eye seems to be a chakra tracker. Much like the Sharingan is." Kuroshi said as he wrote down more on the paper. "The eye you have is actually your own, but could have been taken out before you received your scar and then put back in after your kekkei genkai was activated." The man explained. "Its red color and diamond pupil could most likely be causes of the shock it went through when the chakra was introduced to it. However, it could also be the same eye but healed from the White Chakra and transformed into the red slit form it is now." He didn't raise his red gaze from the paper as he continued. "Considering the abilities it possesses, I believe that the latter possibility is most likely true. Your iris seems to have healed in its slit way as the only likely proof of a scar on your actual eye."

Kuroshi then looked up from the paper to look at him with twin crimson orbs. Kikuto involuntarily narrowed his own eye. "It's a good thing your eye isn't the Sharingan." He said. "I probably would have killed you for having it." He said frankly. "It's similarities are astounding, but the fact that it doesn't seem to memorize all motion and chakra fluctuations and it reads chakra intent more than chakra type differentiates it from the Uchiha kekkei genkai."

Kikuto would have sighed in relief if he didn't know how serious Kuroshi was about killing him if he had the sharingan. He had already had to deal with angry Uchihas about an implanted sharingan, and he wasn't looking to repeat it.

_'If someone else were to activate the Hatake kekkei genkai, would they also receive a red eye when the seal breaks?'_ Kikuto asked curiously. Kuroshi shrugged.

"We'll have to watch Kakashi and see."

Somehow, Kikuto knew that the Uchiha would be watching Kakashi _very_ closely.

"We'll be in touch." He said as he took his leave. "Especially since your relative is on the same team as mine. You better hope Kakashi can keep up with Obito once I'm done with him." Kuroshi said with a bit of competitive edge.

Kikuto just smirked in response.

* * *

As soon as Kikuto had officially been made a ninja of the village as a Jounin, he was immediately pulled from active duty to Tsunade's office. There, the sannin gave him the biggest surprise of his lifetime.

"You're going to be apprenticing under my supervision in medical ninjutsu." She stated. Kikuto stared at her incredulously. He immediately wanted to dart to the door to escape the future Godaime's clutches, but she held him rooted on the spot with a strong hand. "You will receive pay for any jobs you help out with at the Hospital. After a year of training, you'll be working at the hospital full time while I go to the front lines. I won't be going easy on you so you had better be prepared!"

Kikuto waved his hands desperately in front of him trying to convey that he did not, in fact, want to learn medical ninjutsu or be apprenticed to a she-monster. It was to no avail.

"If you don't show up to the hospital at eight o' clock sharp every day, I will drag you here. You will remain in training until four o' clock in the evening or until I dismiss you. Is that clear?"

Kikuto nervously looked at the woman and feared for his life as he hesitantly nodded.

"Good, now, the first lesson starts today."

Kikuto couldn't even try and refuse her as she pulled him into the training room before he could try and sign another word. Later he would realize that she was doing this on purpose, taking advantage of his lack of speech to force him into the training.

He didn't even know why Tsunade wanted to have him learn medical skills from herself personally, but perhaps it was because she had seen his work on Kuroshi and Minato when she had healed them in the hospital and had resolved to teach him the proper way to fix the wounded. Whatever it was, when he went to pick up Kazu from daycare, he was completely exhausted and picked up their dinner instead of cooking it like he had done in the previous nights. He swore that he fell asleep before his head hit his pillow.

* * *

Several days passed with the same routine; get dragged to work, literally work to the bone, pick up Kazu from daycare, get dragged off to help Kakashi with his lightning affinity, and then squeeze in precious hours of rest before morning came again.

After a few weeks though, Kikuto could tell that Kakashi was getting impatient.

"Teach me how to use the White Chakra." He demanded. Kikuto looked up from his medical 'homework', sighed and motioned the boy to follow him.

When they reached Kikuto's apartment, he sent Kazu to go warm up some leftover food from the day before and then sat down with Kakashi.

_'I can't teach you how to use it.'_ Kikuto wrote in his handy notebook simply.

"But it's my birthright! You should want to teach the next generation how to use it!" Kakashi practically seethed. Kikuto held up a hand to quiet the boy.

_'It is activated in an emotionally stressful way where your chakra is so emotionally charged that it tears the seal apart.'_ Kikuto explained. _'Not only can I not teach it to you, but I would never put you through that kind of stress. It is literally your body's way of forcing itself to protect something or someone at the cost of one's emotional stability. It can even be protecting itself. However, it is extremely painful.'_ he said as he remembered the burning and ripping sensation he had felt when his own seal broke. _'It's like willingly ripping your own heart out of your chest and crushing it just to protect that one thing.'_

Kakashi looked down at the floor a bit ashamed once he had finished reading.

"How was my father able to activate it?" The boy asked suddenly.

Kikuto wrote in the book again. _'He went and abandoned his mission to save his friends did he not? His desperation would have caused it to awaken. He didn't get the moniker White Fang from his free usage of the White Chakra. He received it while using the tanto you have in your possession now. That blade is made of a special metal that is tempered to Hatake chakra. Specifically, it is used to train one in the ability to use White Chakra in supplementary form before its primary form.'_ He explained. _'You read about it in the Archives did you not?' _That was where Kikuto himself had gotten most of the information.

"But it didn't say anything about how to activate it." Kakashi muttered darkly.

Kikuto sighed. _'How is your new jutsu coming along?'_ he asked him.

"How did you know I was creating a new technique?!" Kakashi demanded as he leaped to his feet. "I've never used it in any of our training sessions." Kikuto motioned for the boy to calm down.

_'Chakra burns on your left hand.'_ he wrote. _'Lightning affinity is one of the qualities of a Hatake, but I know you have yet to master it.'_

"I can concentrate it in my hand until it's visible and it screams." The boy said haughtily.

Kikuto held out his hands and formed a concentrated orb of lightning chakra in it. The orb chirped loudly as it glowed brighter and brighter. Kakashi's eyes lay fixed on the orb intensely. Kikuto then spread his hands apart and the orb duplicated itself into a string of deadly lightning chakra bombs. The man extinguished the chakra with a quick snap of his wrist.

"How did you do that?" The boy demanded. "And without seals?"

Kikuto grinned. _'Practice.'_ was the simple reply.

"Dinner!" Interrupted the cheerful tone.

Kikuto left the conversation at that.

* * *

The older Hatake would run into Kuroshi during 'work' every once in a while and the two had established a rather professional friendship. The first time they saw each other outside of work was out in the market section. He ran into Kuroshi again buying groceries one day as both of them went to grab at the same ramen package.

"Kikuto" The Uchiha greeted simply.

The Hatake just nodded in response.

"I haven't see you in a while. How's Kazu's eye therapy going?" He asked conversationally. Kikuto just waved a hand in the middle of the air in a so-so motion.

"I see." Kuroshi said. "I had no idea that even with the surgery a success that his eyes would have to completely redevelop. I expected a few years of rehab at most, but a _decade_ of therapy that may or may not help him regain his sight doesn't sound promising."

Kikuto would have face palmed at his friend's bluntness if he wasn't used to it by now. The fact that the man never seemed to know when to use his tact was probably the cause. On his free days, the man had offered to watch Kazu when Kikuto had told the other that he was being submitted to Tsunade's torture for nine hours, and the Hatake was grateful. Personally, he thought that the Uchiha had taken a shine to the oddly pure attitude and wise words that Kazu produced, but Kuroshi had almost vehemently denied it when he brought it up.

"I actually wanted to talk to you about Kazu." The man said. Kikuto eyed him questioning. "I think he's getting separation anxiety." He stated simply. When Kikuto's eyebrows rose, he further explained. "He seems to deflate as soon as you leave, and he doesn't eat that much when you're not there. He seems a bit better when I talk about you with him, but I think he believes that you might leave him again."

Kikuto nodded solemnly. He _had_ considered that, and was he had planned to take an entire week off from his work at the hospital just to spend time with the kid. When he had thought about the entire situation, he did know that separation anxiety was entirely within the realm of possibilities with his son. He had also considered bringing Kazu to work with him if Tsunade would allow it, but in all, he had noticed that he had be neglecting the boy slightly.

Kikuto let out a sigh. He was wondering if he was being a good father or not. Kuroshi gave him a comforting pat on the back.

"You're not the only one." He said. Kikuto looked at the Uchiha in confusion. "Obito got kicked out of the compound a few days ago." Kikuto's eyebrows shot up in surprise at that. "Yeah, I know. I've actually taken the boy in at my apartment since it's the safest place for him to be at the moment. Boys like Shisui and Itachi aren't old enough to understand that an Uchiha being separate from the clan was serious business, but all the other boys are ganging up on him." Kuroshi explained. "He keeps thinking that I have an alternate motive in taking him in. And it's frustrating that when he doesn't think I'm going to hit him for not reason, that he clings to me like a leech."

Kikuto shook his head, taking out his notebook and writing down in it.

_'It's better than Kakashi. The boy won't even look at me without scowling. The only thing he's interested in is training, and he pushes me away every time I try to help him with anything else. It's like I'm being use by a twelve year old.'_ he wrote. _'And when he stares at me when he think's I'm not looking, he always looks so hurt and lost. When I tried to comfort him, he literally walked out of the house.'_

Kuroshi sighed. "When are you going to get that boy to live with you anyway? We both know that despite his attitude he looks up to you and he can't refuse Kazu anything."

Kikuto shrugged. _'That boy will never admit he needs help. And the day he does, I feel like something terrible will happen.'_

"I feel the same way with Obito. It would be so much easier if they got along with each other..."

Something clicked in both men's minds at that and the same thought flashed in their minds. They turned and smirked at each other in realization.

_Friends, huh?_

* * *

AN: I hate sickness. This chapter, as well as any other previously posted chapters, has no beta. You have been warned. Please review.


End file.
